Issue Date:12/20/2004
Hardwood Floors E-News Monday, December 20, 2004 Issue 253 Next issue published January 10, 2005 Deadline for items: January 5, 2005 Send news to [email protected]
Manufacturer News Sheoga Hardwood Flooring & Paneling Inc. (Middlefield, Ohio) has completed construction of two 50,0000 board-foot-capacity American Wood Dryer kilns, bringing its total kiln drying capacity to 250,000 board feet. This was the final phase in a three-part expansion project beginning with the purchase of a state-of-the-art ripping line, after the addition of a new Hasko end-matcher to update the molding line. The company says that the new investment has increased the company's production capacity and has resulted in more distribution opportunities. For more information, contact John Kiepper III at 800/834-1180.
Distributor News Floor Style Products (Hastings, Mich.) now carries four species of WoodFloor Mart's (Miami) ExoticWood line of hardwood flooring-Brazilian cherry, Brazilian walnut, mahogany and amaretto wood. For more information, contact Chris Chamblin at 888/767-8953 or 800/977-6004. The flooring will be available through all Floor Style braches, including the new branch in Florida.
Effective Jan. 1, 2005, Tom Duffy Company (Fairfield, Calif.), a division of Funsten & Co., will distribute Kährs Hardwood Flooring, which is manufactured by Kährs International (Altamonte Springs, Fla.), to northern California and northern Nevada.
Alaska Wholesale Hardwoods (Anchorage, Alaska) now distributes Golvabia prefinished flooring. The Swedish product provides the same click-together floating floor installation that laminates provide with the added benefits of real wood. Golvabia flooring is available in a range of species, including red oak, white oak, teak, American cherry, Brazilian cherry, pine and sapele.
People News Armstrong Holdings Inc. has elected F. Nicholas Grasberger as CFO effective Jan. 1, 2005. Grasberger replaces Leonard A. Campanaro who will remain as a financial advisor to the company. Grasberger comes to Armstrong from Kennametal Inc. where he served as vice president and CFO since 2000. Before Kennametal, Grasberger was employed at H.J. Heinz for 11 years, where his last assignment was treasurer.
Ancestral (Saint-Georges, Quebec) has hired Steve Sharko as the sales representative for Ontario. Sharko comes to the newly created position with more than 20 years' experience in the construction and flooring industries. He is based near Barrie, Ontario, and can be reached at 800/493-3788. Additionally, the company has hired Denis Beaulé and Michel Sanfacon as sales representatives. Beaulé will cover the Montreal, Sherbrooke and Drummondville territories, and Sanfacon is responsible for the northern portion of Montreal, Laval, Saguenay Lac Saint-Jean and the northern parts of Quebec's territories. Meanwhile, in the Maritimes and the United States' New England territories, Peter Shea assumes management. These new sales representatives can be reached at 800/493-3788.
By the Numbers Privately-owned housing starts in November were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,771,000 units. This is 13.1 percent below the revised October estimate of 2,039,000 and 13.8 percent below the November 2003 rate of 2,054,000, according to the Commerce Department. Single-family housing starts in November 2004 were at a rate of 1,448,000; this is 11.7 percent below the October figure of 1,640,000.
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI) edged up to 71 points in December, according to the NAHB. The component gauging current single-family sales, however, remained unchanged at 77 points, while the component gauging expected sales in the next six points rose one point to 79. The component measuring traffic of prospective buyers rose one point to 52.
Job Watch Woodland Distributors (Elk Grove Village, Ill.) seeks an energetic, self-motivated counter person with experience in all aspects of unfinished hardwood flooring sales, as well as finishes. A current customer following is a plus, and benefits include health insurance, 401(k), profit sharing, holiday and vacation pay and weekends off. Résumés should be sent to Jack at 545 S. Lively Blvd., Elk Grove Village, IL 60007, or faxed to 847/364-4883.
Mark Your Calendar The 2005 International Builders' Show will be held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla., Jan. 13-16. The show will include more than 1,600 exhibitors spread over more than 1.5 million square feet of exhibit space. On display will be some of the most cutting-edge designs, technologies, products and services available to the home building community in the new year. The show houses new products from suppliers spanning more than 300 categories from every niche of the residential and light construction industry. For more information, visit www.buildersshow.com or call 800/368-5242, ext. 8111.
Erickson's Flooring & Supply (Ferndale, Mich.) will hold its 20th annual educational conferences this winter. The conferences feature certified NWFA trainers covering three wood flooring topics: basics and fundamentals; advanced skills; and key business techniques. All attendees receive lunch, an Erickson's sweatshirt, NWFA credits and the opportunity to network with industry experts. The dates for the 2005 conferences are Jan. 15 (Indianapolis), Feb. 5 (Bensenville, Ill.), Feb. 19 (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and Feb. 26 (Ferndale, Mich.). The cost is $35 per person. For more information, call 800/225-9663, ext. 1149.
Surfaces 2005, which is to be held Jan. 26-28 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas, will showcase almost 1,000 exhibiting companies. Of those companies, approximately 214 are NWFA members. In addition to the show floor, the event will include 41 workshops and seminars in six targeted tracks: marketing, business, sales, design, installation and window coverings. The Surfaces 2005 Installation Showcase, meanwhile, provides free, live, how-to demonstrations that cover a variety of flooring installations and new processes being used. Installation techniques on hardwood, mixed media, laminate, resilient, tile, stone, carpet and more will be covered. For more information, visit www.surfacesexpo.com or call 800/547-3477.
Mullican Flooring (Johnson City, Tenn.) has announced its Mullican Tech 101 class schedule for 2005. These classes cover marketing and selling; maintenance; claim handling; drying of wood; adhesives; consumer expectations; troubleshooting; properties of wood; species recognition; proper installation techniques; prefinished and unfinished products; and early identification and solution of problems. The dates for the 2005 classes are: Feb. 28-March 1, April 4-5, May 16-17, June 23-24, Aug. 8-9 and Nov. 7-8. The schools are held in Johnson City, and Mullican provides materials, meals and hotel accommodations. For more information, call 800/844-6356 or visit www.mullicanflooring.com.
The Remodeling Show 2004 had more than 12,150 in total registered attendance. The 2005 show, which will be held Oct. 13-15, will be held at the Baltimore Convention Center. Those who reserve booth space before Jan. 14, 2005, will receive a discounted per-square-foot price. For more information, visit www.theremodelingshow.com or call 972/536-6394.
NWFA Member Services Are you ready to take your professional skills to the next level? Attend the Advanced Installation School at the NWFA's International Training Center in St. Louis, Feb. 9 -11. Why should you attend now? Three reasons: this will be the only Advanced School offered during 2005; successful completion of this school is required to attend the NWFA Expert Installation School in October; and you need the Advanced School to progress from the Craftsman Degree to the Master Craftsman Degree. For more information, call the NWFA at 800/422-4556 (U.S.), 800/848-8824 (Canada) or 636/519-9663 (local and international), e-mail [email protected] or visit www.nwfa.org
